New passenger car registrations in Norway surged in February, recovering from a slow start to the year, with electric vehicles (EVs) solidifying their near-total dominance by capturing 98 per cent of the market. This trend saw traditional petrol-powered cars register a mere 12 sales for the entire month.
EVs Cement Dominance in Recovering Market
Following a dip in January, which marked one of the lowest new car registration figures in years and saw EV market share fall to 94 per cent, February brought a return to normalcy for Norway’s automotive sector. The Opplysningsrådet for Veitrafikken (OFV), Norway’s Road Information Traffic Information Council, described the market’s return to a “more normal rhythm.”
While total new passenger car registrations stood at 7,272 in February, a decrease of 18.7 per cent compared to the same month in the previous year, the OFV noted an upturn in the latter half of the month. This suggests “that the market is recovering from the sharp shift at the turn of the year,” according to the council.
The overwhelming majority of these registrations were electric vehicles, with EVs accounting for 98 per cent of all new cars registered in February. This level of adoption underscores Norway’s position as a global leader in embracing electric mobility.
Fossil Fuel Vehicles All but Phased Out
The figures for non-electric vehicles further highlight the profound shift in Norway’s car market. In February, only 66 hybrid cars were sold, a category that included 46 plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs).
Sales of traditional fossil fuel vehicles were even more scarce. Just 67 diesel cars and a mere 12 petrol cars were registered during the month. This starkly low number led the OFV to conclude that “the fossil car has thus practically been phased out of the new car market in Norway.”
Tesla Leads the Pack Amidst Brand Competition
Given the widespread adoption of EVs, American manufacturer Tesla emerged as the top-selling brand in Norway for February, capturing 16.6 per cent of newly registered vehicles. Toyota followed with 12.9 per cent of the market, and Volkswagen secured the third position with 8.6 per cent.
The Tesla Model Y was the most popular single model, with 1,073 units registered in February. In contrast, the Tesla Model 3 registered only 130 units, placing it as the 16th best-selling model for the month.
Other top-performing models included the Toyota bZ4X, which ranked second with 514 registrations, and the Volvo EX40, which took the third spot with 425 registrations.
Looking Back at 2025 EV Dominance
The trend observed in February is a continuation of Norway’s commitment to electric vehicles, which was strongly evident throughout 2025. In the full year of 2025, a total of 179,550 new passenger cars were registered in the country.
Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) accounted for a significant 97.6 per cent of these registrations. Hybrid vehicles, encompassing various forms, made up an additional 2.9 per cent of the market share during the same period.
These figures from 2025 set the stage for the near-complete transition away from internal combustion engine vehicles that is now being observed in the latest monthly reports.